


Reflection

by ineedhelpwithmylifern



Category: Danny Phantom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:29:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25092403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ineedhelpwithmylifern/pseuds/ineedhelpwithmylifern
Summary: Danny is haunted by visions of his older self. At least he has his friends.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	Reflection

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Cartara](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cartara/gifts).



> This is my Holiday Truce piece for Beghostdocrimes on tumblr! It was a lot of fun to do.
> 
> I've backdated this to when it was originally posted on my tumblr for clarity's sake.

Another night. Another sleepless night due to nightmares. Every. Single. Damn. Night. Why couldn’t his subconscious just leave him alone for once?!

Danny had awoken in a cold sweat, another dream pulling him up and awake. He could never remember what it was- except for a pair of glowing red eyes and a haunting laugh that would plague him for hours on end, not letting him get the sleep he needed.

He always had a suspicion as to what it was, the eyes holding a sinister glow he probably would never forget. A glow that reflected the fears of his future.

But, Dan- Danny had so helpfully named him that to help himself, to keep him differentiated from himself- Dan was no longer his future. Dan wasn’t going to hurt him anymore.

But the fear was always there.

Danny pushed himself up into a sitting position, gazing around his room with a frown. All the posters. Space, mainly. So many constellations, planets, rocket ships, all signs of who he used to be, a little kid who had just wanted to go to space, to be an astronaut. His grades had ruined that dream, and then he became the half-ghost superhero, Phantom.

He got up and out of bed, relishing the cold air coming from his bedroom window. He transformed and flew through the wall. A midnight flight couldn’t harm him much, could it? It would help.

Soon enough, he found himself above Casper High, looking down at the grass. A test is what had doomed himself in that timeline… He went in through the ceiling and started roaming the empty halls. It was… Peaceful here at night. The moon shone through some of the windows and made the whole of the school almost eerie.

He strolled past classrooms, and then he noticed the door to Mr. Lancer’s. The window showed desks lined up, as they always were. It was normal, but the night gave it a different view.

Danny but his lip, eyes staring at his reflection in the window, a test forefront in his mind. A flash of red in his eyes shocked him, making him stumble back.

Why was this haunting him? Dan couldn’t become real now.

Impossible.

He was done with Casper High for tonight.

The next place he ended up at was the Nasty Burger. Something had drawn him there and the flickering lights of the sign seemed welcoming. He stepped in through the doors. No one would really care that the town hero was walking in through the doors of a 24-hour restaurant. Whoever would be in there was probably tired out of their mind.

Who would really care?

He pushed open the door, the only people in the building seeming to be the staff. The cashier looked up at him confusedly. “Phantom.?”

He didn’t respond as he walked over to a corner booth, which was somewhat secluded. The cashier seemed to not really care, looking back at their phone.

Danny picked at his glove, trying to figure out why he was in there. Some pop radio station droned on through the speakers, quiet but still there. He found himself drifting off, his head resting on the back of the seat.

He let sleep overcome him, the music an anchor-

Red eyes and a mocking laugh.

He shot up in the seat, everything around him fading into something different. Several of the walls had been destroyed, the windows shattered. The containers of Nasty Sauce were in plain sight, the heat of them rising above safe levels. His family, his friends, Mr. Lancer- they were all strapped to them.

Danny tried to scream out for help, to tell them that he would save them, but the laughing overpowered his senses. He tried to get up and fly away, but there Dan was, waiting for him. He flew backwards, running into glass and shattering it.

It brought him back to the present.

Laying on the ground, he licked his lips. Yeah. This was surely what he wanted to happen. People were beginning to gather. He should get away.

The top of the FentonWorks building was a place to hide. He laid on the top of the OPS center, staring up at the stars. He could be okay. It would be okay.

He didn’t know how long he was up there when the hatch door to the roof opened. He sat up slowly, looking at whoever was disturbing him.

It was Tucker and Sam.

“Dude, are you alright?” Tucker was the first to speak after the two had sat down on either side of him, looking worried.

“Yeah, Danny, we hear about the Nasty Burger incident, and dude-” Sam took a breath. “Assumed you’d be here.”

Danny laughed dryly, “No, haven’t been okay. I can’t get my future self out of my mind, he’s been haunting me and I can’t stop it.” He placed a hand against his face- wait when had he transformed back?- “I tried to fly to get my mind off it all, but it only made it worse.”

“Danny, you can talk about it, we’re your friends,” Sam hummed, patting him lightly on the shoulder. “We came up here to help.”

“I know, and I am talking about it.” Danny sighed and Sam nodded sharply.

Tucker placed his hand on Danny’s arm. “Dude, you won’t become Dan anymore. You didn’t cheat on the test, we didn’t die to a Nasty Burger explosion. It’s alright?”

“But how do you know that?” Danny hissed, knowing of the tears that were falling down his face. “How do you know I won’t make some dumb mistake that will land me in the exact same place?”

Sam shook her head, “Danny, it’s because we’re your friends. The same reason we came to help you. We know you, and we know that you know enough that you won’t go and make the same mistake you were told not to.” She laughed quietly, looking sad. “Because you’re careful about that stuff. Because you’re Danny.”

Sam hugged him, and so did Tucker. Danny accepted it.

“And, dude,” Tucker began, “You beat him once, you can beat him again!”

“Yeah.”

And Danny smiled.

**Author's Note:**

> Come check me out on tumblr under nalanoola!


End file.
